


Past is a heavy burden

by SrebrnaFH



Series: Legacy of Responsibility [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Irondad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-13
Updated: 2019-05-13
Packaged: 2020-03-02 18:54:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18816961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SrebrnaFH/pseuds/SrebrnaFH
Summary: Pepper and May, talking. Mostly.





	Past is a heavy burden

**Author's Note:**

> Again, Endgame left me with Feelings. I will be letting them out in small doses.  
> Obviously, spoilers.

"I wanted to tell you how grateful I am for Peter's help, May. He has been a wonderful influence with Morgan, especially since I had to take her out of school."

"That bad?" May glanced to where Peter was helping Morgan with some complicated LEGO structure.

"Other kids--" Pepper replaced her cup on the saucer. "Their parents should have known better, but still, they kept badgering her with their idiocy. Saying things about Tony-- People don't understand how it all went down - despite all the documentaries and explanations and the way Bruce published his summary, they are being completely unreasonable."

There was silence in the large flat, only occasionally broken by Peter's soft suggestion and Morgan's questions.

"They blame Tony for... for what?" May leaned closer.

"For bringing the wrong people back, to begin with. They mix up what Bruce did with what Tony did, completely. Bruce came forward many, many times and offered his explanation, but they disregard him - he is nice, he isn't the one who did something wrong. It was Tony Stark, the stuck-up know-it-all, who messed up everyone's lives--" she stood up, turned to the window, trying obviously to calm herself.

"So they are unhappy they had regained their lost families...?"

Pepper shrugged.

"For one, not everyone did. Some people were returned in the place they disappeared from and there was nobody to find them. There were deaths," she said woodenly. "Children. Elderly. Injured. People who were dusted while in a hospital. And we have no idea what kind of death toll there was outside of US, Canada and European Union, we still don't have confirmation. Well, Wakanda we know. And they are trying to manage their area, too, but it's still not enough data."

"Doctor Banner seemed rather subdued the last time we saw him," May supplied, sipping her tea.

"He is. At the same time he knows that nobody is blaming him - by mistake, they blame Tony for the 'coming back' snap - and he blames himself very much. But with the scale, the sheer numbers... He couldn't have done it any better."

"Nobody could have," May nodded slowly. "It was half of the population of the whole universe, the very fact must have been daunting."

"And then there are the people who came back in the right place and safe, but not that... not that welcome anymore," Pepper turned back to face May. "Children whose parents got new partners and had new children in the meanwhile. People whose spouses found new life. Moved on. There are kids in Morgan's class who are the same age as their younger siblings - because they were born five years before the snap. They can't find their place. The society can't put itself together again, and so they blame Tony. And, by extension, Morgan. In some way, she is the symbol of everything he did wrong," she sniffed. "I can't allow them to make her believe it."

Peter ripped another package of LEGOs open and poured them onto the building mat.

"He is like a kid himself," May sighed. "He relaxes here. A lot."

"He has been a godsend. I am--" she looked back at May "--so grateful to you for allowing Peter to stay in contact with us. I understand it must have been quite hard to... Since the very fact of his relationship with us exposed him to all these dangers."

May shrugged and nodded at the same time.

"I wasn't one of those who had to grieve and sit there in despair, so I suppose it is different for me. If I was, I can't guarantee I would have been that open to the idea, but as it was, I think Peter needs Morgan - he has a strong need to help. And I think he feels he should somehow repay Mr Stark for taking care of him."

Pepper drew a slow breath.

"Tony would have loved this," she said finally. "He would have invaded their time ruthlessly, probably stealing the blocks or sending one of his robots to mess up whatever they'd build. And he would have dragged Peter off to the lab to test tensile strength of the new suit fibre or to give Peter a workout. He had been rather--" she trailed off, worrying her lip with her teeth. "Despondent. Ever since he had lost Peter and Stephen on that planet."

"I wish," May found herself grasping for words. "I wish it would have been possible. For all of our sakes. But, for now, you have the best babysitter you can find - and one that knows his LEGO minifigures."

Pepper nodded, massaging her wrists mechanically. Her bracelets reacted by flashing dimly.

"And she is quite safe with the friendly neighbourhood Spiderman, I suppose. But, to the point," she pulled a thick file from the shelf. "I wanted to show you these. Tony had been preparing things, ever since we knew there was a possibility of bringing everyone back. He had this done. For-- for Peter."

The file was filled with a number of official-looking bundles of paper, the topmost of them bearing the header of the US Patent office, with a number, a very much technical title and Tony Stark's name.

"What are these?" she asked finally.

"Peter's patents," Pepper explained simply. "Everything the two of them had worked on. Everything that makes Peter's suit - suits - work. All the fabrics, netting. Everything. Tony submitted them and pushed for confirmation. These are full patents, nothing pending or waiting or... whatever."

"But they are made in Mr Stark's name, I don't really understand--"

"Tony decided it would be better like this - less people willing to try to take him on than some random kid from Queens. I concurred. But he had the lawyers draft a will that gives all the rights for this set of patents to Peter, exclusively."

"B-but... this is Stark Enterprises property...!"

"And Peter is Stark Enterprises employee. Officially, paperwork was done ages ago. He is employed, just his duties are at the CEO's discretion. And what with CEO being me--" she shrugged. "He isn't supposed to get any money from usage of these until he turns twenty-one _or_ graduates university - and better make it MIT, too. He can veto them being used for purposes he doesn't like, although I've already established that 'Peter portfolio' is to be used solely for non-combat purposes."

May turned over another page.

"This is the Iron Man suit," she hissed, "Peter never..."

"Peter's basic ideas gave Tony the needed push to change the suit. This is not the patent for the whole suit, just for specific components that we used for joinings and elements overlap. My armour incorporates solution based on Peter's impact-resistance calculations, too."

May blinked.

" _Your_ armour?"

Pepper rubbed her wrists again and nodded slowly.

"What will you tell Peter?" she asked finally.

May glanced at where Peter was now being schooled in the proper way of braiding a pony's tail.

"Nothing yet," May said softly. "I have to think about it. I don't want to burden him more."

"May, he needs to know. Tony wanted him to have them. There is a letter, too," she pointed out to an envelope, stuck in the cover of the last file. "It may be life-altering to him. Mine was," she added almost inaudibly.

May saw Peter watching the two of them with narrowed eyes.

Oh, well.

He was an adult, after all.

"Petey! Once you and Morgan are done, come and have a look at this."

She shared a glance with Pepper.

"Children grow up," the CEO of Stark Enterprises said, turning towards the window again. "All we can do is to give them the tools they'll need to defend themselves against the world that wants to eat them."

May shivered and drained her cup.

Morgan squealed happily as she pushed the last piece in place and looked up at Peter with a wide smile.

_Children grow up._


End file.
